1. You can keep the weight off during Thanksgiving weekend. For me, it required 18 miles of running.
   
2. "Green Bean Casserole" is tasty for a post-Thanksgiving potluck. Unfortunately, it doesn't always work as subject matter for an improv song.
   
3. From Sunday's sermon: The #1 lie told is, "I'll start (insert infinitive verb here) tomorrow". Procrastination. Isn't that the truth.
   
4. Episode III would have been better if it included those deleted backstory scenes of Padme and the beginnings of the Rebel Alliance.
   
5. Most Americans probably would not know what a kinkajou is, (let alone spell it correctly), if it were not for a certain vapid socialite.

So last evening, I took a walk down memory lane, as classic modern rock fave, Depeche Mode made their way to the Los Angeles area for their opening night concert stop. It was an absolute treat hearing the band play some of their greatest hits live. It brought back some good memories and I left wishing it would never end.

After coming back from the performance, I looked at my old DM CD catalog, found an old concert ticket stub, and realized that it was almost exactly 12 years ago that I last went to their concert. Thought it would be interesting to compare the two events in a mock "tale-of-the-tape"

Depeche Mode: Back Then vs. Last Night
Category	Back Then (Nov. 20, 1993)	Last Night (Nov. 21, 2005)	Advantage
Tour	The Devotional Tour, promoting the album, "Songs of Faith and Devotion"	Touring the Angel, promoting the album, "Playing the Angel"	Back Then. The band was coming off their highest commercial success from their previous album, Violator.
Venue	The Great Western Forum: Old home of the Los Angeles Lakers. Floor seats!	The Staples Center: New home of the Los Angeles Lakers. Upper Level, Section 318	Push. The floor seats were great, but the Forum's acoustics were not. The upper level in Staples provided a decent left-side view, and the sound mix was good.
Ticket Price (including that dreaded Ticketmaster fee)	$22.50 (+ $4.00)	$49.50 (+ $9.15)	Back Then! Even taking in inflation, those Forum floor seats were definitely a great deal. Floor seats for last night's show were $85.00 each!
Company	A couple of college friends, and a girl I was interested in.	My neighbors (Stan and Robin), and Michelle.	Push. Both concert "groupies" were entertaining and enthusiastic DM fans. Humorous note: Last I heard, the girl was engaged to my old college roommate! And yes, I am still on friendly terms with both of them!
Concert Souvenirs	1 "life-size" band poster, and 1 imitation concert t-shirt (approx. $20)	1 "MODE: Behind the Wheel" t-shirt ($35)	Last Night. The poster is gathering dust in my closet, and I found out later that the imitation shirt had multiple spelling errors on the concert cities!
Opening Band	The The	The Raveonettes	Last Night. I liked the sound of the Raveonettes better. Think of modern guitar rock mixed with a 50's/60's two-part harmony feel. The The? I was waiting for The End!
Stage Setup	5 LARGE, cubed video monitors in the back, playing continual Anton Corbijn images, even in between songs.  Raised drumkit, and 2 synth stations.	2-3 large video monitors showing various candid band photos during songs. Drumkit and one raised synth station. Stage right island.	Back Then. I don't know if Corbijn was as heavily involved in the stage direction for last night show, but I wouldn't be surprised if his input was minimal.
Band Lineup	Dave (vocals), Martin (vocals, guitar), Fletch (keyboards), and Alan(drums, keyboards).	Dave (vocals), Martin (vocals, guitar), Fletch (keyboards), and unknown session drummer.	Back Then. Yes, Dave looked downright emaciated 12 years ago (because of his past drug problem. He's sober now!), but surprisingly, his vocals were incredibly strong. Plus it was nice to see all four members rock out for a couple of songs! I do have to say though, the session drummer from last night was pretty good! And Dave still has that "stage presence"
Song Selection	Half the songs from the current album, and a healthy mix of classic stuff. Highlight: "World in My Eyes" Lowlight: No "Somebody"	Main setlist here. Highlight: Hearing everybody sing the chorus to "Personal Jesus". Lowlight: No "People are People"	Last Night: I am OK without hearing "People are People" (which was the first DM song I heard in 6th grade). I was greatly disappointed when Martin didn't sing "Somebody" in '93.

Final Tally: Back Then barely wins 4-3 with 2 draws. I am OK with that, since that '93 concert was the very first one that I ever went to. Yes, I got a late start on seeing live music, but I am certainly making up for it! And it's nice to know that DM still has a strong loyal following here in Los Angeles after 25 years together as a band.

Anyone interested in a catching an improv show this Saturday evening in Little Tokyo? This Asian improv group, Cold Tofu is having their last show for the year. I was originally going to take classes with them after my stint with ComedySportz, but once again, I had scheduling conflicts.

Their Level 1 students will be performing also, and I am curious as to how they will fare.

Show time is 7:30 pm. And get this. Their admission is "Pay-What-You-Can".

While my friends and "neighbors", Joe and Naoko were off these past couple of weeks on their Parisian honeymoon, I took care of their plants. They were definitely a nice touch around the apartment, and brightened up the place a lot. And I have to admit that when they came by last Sunday to pick them up, it left such a empty feeling; both in my apartment and in my mind.

So, it looks like this weekend, I will be heading over to the local nursery to browse over, and maybe pick up a couple of "friends". I certainly don't see myself as having a green thumb. But I know what I felt on Sunday. It just seems odd, considering I've been plantless for so long.

Fast forward to the events this Thursday evening. After my weekly club run, I joined up with the "Iowan" roomates of Michelle, Terri and newest addition, birthday girl Beverly, for some eats at the local Curry House, and late night karaoke downstairs at Yuu Yuu. No out-of-the ordinary songs from me tonight, but I must say, I had more than my listening quota on 50 Cent cuts. "G-G-G-G-UNIT!"

Back in (show) business?!

While there were some setbacks this All Hallow's Eve weekend on the running front (missed both the Roadrunners training run and the 5K LA Cancer Challenge), there were some exciting moments scattered in there too. Like watching the Bruin football team escape from Palo Alto with a victory. By the way, I think I've had enough nervous breakdowns for the month after seeing three comeback wins in the past four weeks!

I also went back to my improv stomping grounds and saw my old ComedySportz classmates perform in separate shows. Three of them retook the Level 3 Advanced class after the summer off, and they did an adequate job for their "graduation show".

Five others advanced, and are now performing on a new, monthly Sunday show. I gladly paid admission to see them, and each one had their moment in the sun. And since it was a Halloween-themed show, we the audience members, all got candy tossed to us by the cast! Since I didn't have my camera for my graduation show, I rounded up the gang for a quick reunion picture. Hey, when they become famous, I'll be very glad to name-drop them!

The 'Fraidy Bunch: from left to right: Ryan (who "surfed" on top of a female teammate acting as a human surfboard prop), Alison (her voicework is phenomenal), yours truly, Jessica (sharp as a tack), Natisha (who acted as an unagi sushi for one skit), and Rich (a definite "class clown"). Can you spot the Asian?

I came back from ComedySportz and surprisingly, my back felt well enough to do my scheduled 2.3 mile training run around the neighborhood. It was very encouraging that I finished up my run nearly 2 minutes faster than my PR. I guess the rehab and rest did some good. And maybe it's true that laughter is the best medicine.

Straining forward?

The Halloween weekend is coming up, and I have opportunities to wear a costume to some social engagements, a special 5K run, as well as to work on Monday (I definitely look forward to staff meeting, but I have the strange feeling that I will be the only one decked out.).

But all that has been put on hold for now. I tweaked my lower back in rollerhockey Tuesday night, which has made things difficult to do anything. This injury has made me pretty angry, as I apply cold packs on my lower lumbar area, because

1. I couldn't play volleyball earlier tonight to help my league team
   
2. I can't play our church's yearly broomball match tonight.
   
3. My marathon training run for Saturday is in jeopardy...
   
4. ...as well as my special 5K run on Sunday

I guess this injury is communicating to me the need to slow down, and to focus/spend time on other interests (currently, reading my checked-out library books). Which is fine by me. But, is it asking too much if I could do these other things without having to lie on my stomach and doing rehab stretches?

Better head to bed. I hope to be OK tomorrow morning.

Happy Birthday Sis!

You gotta like having your birthday on a Friday. A weekend celebration!

Just out of curiosity, I Googled for a list of Oct. 14 Birthdays and found this link. Not only does my sister share a birthday with Madonna's kid, Lourdes, but also one of my heroes, John Wooden.

Post-Birthday Leftovers

It felt like my birthday celebration lasted for a week, which was a great thing. Phone calls from the family. Complimentary meals from my boss (The Depot; the seafood steamer basket was good.) and my oldest buddy (The Stinking Rose; The 40 Clove Garlic Chicken was OK.) last Tuesday and Saturday, respectively. Plenty of cards. And to top it off, a weeknight gathering last Wednesday (my actual birth day) at Michelle's place with various friends stopping by.

While I greatly appreciated all my birthday gifts (you are too kind), two of them were deemed xanga-worthy.

Yep, selected Old Testament Biblical stories are entirely done in LEGO format. You can also check out the author's work online, but just like reading the OT, it can be viewed as scandalous and is considered PG-13. I laughed at this, because it reminded me of one of my old buddies who started building LEGO scenes from The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, before the movies came out.

First reaction: . I should have known it was going to be an "interesting" gift by the Sanrio giftwrap paper!

My sister is probably laughing right now, because she has told me many times before that I am that penguin (His "grumpy" demeanor is supposedly like mine). My friend who gave me the lunch kit told me that she has seen dudes sporting Badtz Maru gear. Maybe I am out of touch or something, but I haven't ever seen any guy with that stuff!

At least it will make for interesting conversation in the breakroom at work. So yes, I will use it. I just hope this "bento box"  is microwave-safe for reheating dinner leftovers.

Less than 30 minutes left...

I want to thank everyone who made my 32nd birthday special (You know who you are!). I feel honored and blessed to have you in my life. And I look forward to more interesting times ahead!

An early birthday present...

I couldn't believe it. I won the grand prize raffle from my running club tonight: A $100 gift certificate for Nike running shoes!

This should help out in my marathon training!